Piscataway, Woodbridge ready to square off in rematch of pivotal ’09 result

When the Piscataway and Woodbridge High School football teams collided last autumn, both entered the game on a roll, but left going in vastly different directions.

Woodbridge's Devin Hairson

The Barrons were starting to turn around a season that had opened 0-4, and used a surprising 10-3 win as the real turning point in a five-game winning streak that was punctuated with a rousing upset of Union in the state playoffs.

The Chiefs rode in on a four-game tear, having emphatically erased an 0-2 start, but that defeat sent them spinning to a 1-3 finish, with only a Thanksgiving win over Franklin down the stretch.

The two teams meet again Friday night (7 p.m.) in Woodbridge, and once again both are on the upswing at 2-0 on the young season.

“”Most of these guys played in that game last year,” Piscataway head coach Dan Higgins said. “”That’s a game these guys all remember, and they’re going to be ready to go.”

Higgins’ club has been leaning on a roster of home-run hitters on both sides of the ball, though he would like to see alittle more consistency. Junior tailback Tevin Shaw rattled off three touchdown runs of 60 yards or more in the opener

against Edison, and sophomore Kyle LaPorte returned a punt 70 yards to pay dirt. Then last week against South Brunswick, it was the defense’s turn, as Shaw took back a fumble 65 yards for a key score.

“”We’re doing some things right,” Higgins said. “”Obviously, we’ve been successful the first two weeks, but there’s a lot of room for improvement. When we execute well, we’ve been landing really big plays. We’ve been scoring on big runs, and defensively. We’ve got to work on being more consistent, and not always rely on the big plays.”

Meanwhile, the Barrons wasted little time drubbing Old Bridge and J.P. Stevens, with star junior Kyle Anderson quarterbacking an equally potent offense to 83 points in two games.

Anderson was 12 of 16 for 226 yards in those games, with five touchdowns against no interceptions.

A balanced running attack, which features five players who have carried the ball at least five times, has supplemented Anderson with 451 yards thus far.

“”Watching them on film, they’re very, very good,” Higgins said. “”From our perspective, we need to elevate our play, and play the way we’re capable of. And we’ll need to, or else were not going to get a win.”

About Mike New

Mike New is former writer at the Home News Tribune, having covered Middlesex County softball in 2009 and 2010. A 2008 graduate of Rutgers University, he served as sports editor and managing editor of The Daily Targum. Now an assistant in the publishing world, he has returned to In the Paint and will be a weekly contributor on Sundays.

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Home News Tribune writer Greg Tufaro talks about high school football

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Greg TufaroGreg Tufaro is in his 20th year as a sports writer at the Home News Tribune, where he has covered recreational, collegiate, scholastic and professional sports. He is a graduate of Rutgers University. Greg lives in Central Jersey with his wife Cyndi and their 5-year-old daughter Marisa.E-mail Greg

Joe MartinoJoe Martino has covered Central Jersey news and sports for the Courier News and Home News Tribune since 2009. Currently, he’s an innovative member of the MyCentralJersey.com online news team. He’s lived in Bridgewater his entire life and is a graduate of Ramapo College.E-mail Joe